‘You’re putting girls at risk!' Michelle Dewberry rages at Labour as she fumes 'just push the migrants back'

Her comments come as Saturday saw 737 migrants reach Britain's southern coast aboard 11 small boats, pushing this year's Channel crossing total beyond the 40,000 threshold for the first time since 2022.

The arrivals on December 13 came after an unprecedented 28-day gap in crossings, the longest such pause recorded since 2018, attributed to unfavourable weather conditions.

Speaking about this on Britain's News Channel, a furious Michelle said: "When I point out that Government policy is directly putting me, as a woman, at risk, as well as women and children, the response is often just, 'yeah, that’s a legitimate concern', I know it’s a legitimate concern because I feel it.

"Just this afternoon, I was watching footage of a Sudanese man trying to snatch a 17-year-old girl off the street.

"I think it’s absolutely revolting that we have politicians in this country who will simply acknowledge that our policies are putting women and girls at risk without taking meaningful action.

"I find it repulsive and appalling. I will never understand why the Navy and other authorities aren’t in the Channel, literally pushing boats back to France.

"I cannot fathom that. And frankly, I don’t care when people say, 'but what about everyone in the boats?'

"My priority is the girls, the women, and the children in this country. That should be the Government’s primary concern. "

Home Office data reveals the annual figure now stands at 40,029, making 2025 likely to record the second-highest number of small boat arrivals since tracking began in 2018.

Each vessel carried an average of 67 people during the perilous journey from northern France to England's coast.

The 2022 total reached 45,755, while 2023 and 2024 saw 29,437 and 36,816 arrivals respectively.

Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood acknowledged on Sunday that shifting weather patterns had triggered the resumption of crossings after nearly a month without arrivals.

Speaking to Sky News, she outlined ongoing collaboration with French authorities, stating: "The work that we're doing with law enforcement in France has already stopped 20,000 crossings."

Ms Mahmood noted that even as migrants successfully reached Britain on Saturday, disruption efforts had prevented some vessels from completing the journey.

"There is no one silver bullet here," she conceded. "We have to come up with a range of proposals at every level in order to try and bear down on this."

The Home Secretary indicated the Government had gained valuable insights since taking office regarding which interventions prove most effective.

The French Maritime Prefect reported multiple incidents during Saturday's crossings, including four migrants who fell into the sea near Sangatte and were rescued suffering from hypothermia, while another vessel experienced engine failure before continuing its journey.

French authorities explained they avoid forcing migrants onto rescue vessels due to the structural weakness of overloaded boats, fearing such intervention could trigger capsizing.